One of the most precious feasts in the Bible is Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving Day, which appears in the Old Testament as the Feast of Tabernacles and the Feast of Succoth, is at the end of the year. Numbers 29 describes the greatest thanksgiving feast in detail. Worship and Thanksgiving are essential to observing Biblical feasts. Because God has clearly commanded to "worship" with thanksgiving (Psalm 50:14, 23), worship without gratitude is false worship. Psalm 50: 23 says that God promises to show salvation to those who worship in thanksgiving.
A thankful faith is a faith that acknowledges God's sovereignty (Psalm 107: 22). Faith that God is the Lord of history and the source of life and death cannot exist without grateful faith. As Jesus passed through Samaria and Galilee in today’s passage, Jesus cured the ten lepers and told them "Go and show yourselves to the priests.” Nine Jews of the ten, however, thought that it was healed because of the time. Only one Samaritan returned back to Jesus to give thanks and glory to God. Jesus was saddened saying "Is there no one who has come back to glorify God except this Gentile?"
It is the same today. Did we give thanks to God for receiving abundant grace, returning as much grace as we have received throughout the year? For nine Jewish leopards, Barclay says, "Most people never come back once they get what they want." But only the Samaritan leper, who was isolated and despised, returned and gave thanks and glory.
May you be like the Samaritan leper returning to give thanks and glory to the Lord during this year's Thanksgiving.
Excerpt from the sermon of Rev. Abraham Park
